Amanda Pelkey had a breakout 2013-14 season with the University of Vermont Catamounts.

In her third season of collegiate hockey, the Montpelier, Vt. native set team records with 21 goals and 40 points. Her four points against RIT last October tied another team record for points in a game.

The standout performance followed a freshman season in which Pelkey was named to the 2011-12 Hockey East All-Rookie Team and a sophomore season when, despite missing the first month of the season, the forward still had nine goals and 11 assists to finish second on her team in points.

What has been the key to her success?

“If I really had to think about it, just breaking down each shift,” Pelkey said. “I went over a lot more film than I did in previous years. That helped a lot. I loved doing film with [Vermont assistant coach] Kelly Nash. That helped a tremendous amount.”

Pelkey’s breakout college season coincided with her rise through the national team ranks. In August, Pelkey helped the U.S. Under-22 Select team sweep Canada in a three-game series in Calgary, Alberta. One month later, in September, Pelkey was one of 36 players brought in to USA Hockey's Women's National Team's Evaluation Camp at the University of New England.

Pelkey also has a long history with the U.S. U18 team, having played in the IIHF  U18 World Championships in 2009, 2010 and 2011 — winning the world title in her first and last appearances.

Pelkey didn't record a point in the three-game sweep against the Canadians, but she took some positives from the games and the selection camp that was held in Lake Placid, N.Y. before traveling up to Calgary.

“It went really well,” she said. “The team did great, and it was a great group of girls that we had there. Especially having it for two weeks, having us at Lake Placid for a week and in Calgary. It was long travel, but the group of girls made it worth it.”

Pelkey also loves facing the Canadians.

“It always makes it a competitive environment,” Pelkey said. “One thing I think about is it's a healthy competitiveness, and I think that's a really good thing about Canada versus the U.S.

“Yeah it's extreme competitive event, but it's a healthy one.”    

Playing for the national team and playing for Vermont complement each other, Pelkey said, in part because U.S. U22 coach Ken Klee and Vermont coach Jim Plumer have similar styles. The coaches both let their players show off their strengths as long they stay in the boundaries of their systems, Pelkey said.

“Similar to my coach at UVM, there is not an excessive amount of emphasis placed on systems,” Pelkey said of the U.S. team. “So it involves creativity and allowing that to come through, especially at this level when most of us are pretty mature players and have been through a lot of different systems, which ones work, which ones don't.”

Her first experience with Klee, who played for seven NHL teams, was with he U22 team in August.

“All the girls loved having him around,” Pelkey said. “The thing with him, he kept things really simple and to the point. When he did have anything to say to you, he had a reason. Basically anything he had to say to us, he had a reason. But there's a deeper understanding; anything he told you, you took it to heart. He understands the game, he played it for a while.”

Now that she’s back in Burlington, Vt., the senior said she brings lessons she learned with the national team back to Gutterson Fieldhouse.

“Talking to the coaches, and anything they say to me, I take in strong consideration to help better myself going back to school,” Pelkey said. “Even coaching concepts. We had captains’ meetings and I was telling my coaches about that.”

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.